It seemed inevitable that she end up in this situation. Summoning circle, candles, her friends giggling as they touched up her makeup. She scowled and tried to fight down a blush. She felt like she was going to die of embarrassment. Damn her friends. Damn that book series. Damn them both to the lowest levels of hell.
Dara had tried to resist the Twin Souls series. Really, she had. Drugstore romance was not her thing. But her friends hadn't shut up about it, and frankly she had felt left out of the frequent - and heated - shipping debates.
That hadn't been the tipping point though, oh no. The tipping point had been when they started shipping her with Alcor. Sure, she had a track record of questionable datemates, but that didn't mean she wanted to get with some dream demon! Sure, there was that one time with the werewolf, but he was a sweet guy. It was strict personality differences that had ended that relationship. That's a completely different story for another time though.
Dara didn't want to deal with the awkward situation that would be buying a physical copy of the books in person, so she downloaded a digital copy. It wasn't like she wanted to spend her money on the crap series either. She had read the entire series in one sitting and, much to her dismay, she could see where her friends were coming from. Suave. Sensual. Adorably ignorant of human culture, yet a complete badass. Quick wit and a charming, albeit pointy, smile. Damn, her friends knew her type better than she did.
Dara threw her phone across the room and threw her covers over herself. Nope. She would deal with this later.
"Soooo," her friend, Nidria, giggled. "What did you think?"
"I think that a fictional representation of an all-powerful demon has to be flawed somehow. He can't really be just like that," Dara rolled her eyes. She'd come to this conclusion sometime around the three am mark. She had also come to the conclusion that, hypothetically, if Alcor were just like he was described in the Twin Souls series and, hypothetically, he were interested in her… Yeah. She was crushing hard.
"Or it's completely right!" She gasped, eyes lighting up. "OH! What if you're his Mizar? There hasn't been one for a while! What if it's YOU!"
Dara flinched at the excited shrieking of her friend. "I really doubt that."
"Oh it would be so romantic! I HAVE to set you two up RIGHT NOW!" Nidria ran off with an excited squeal.
And that was how she had ended up here, after a week of Nidria grilling her about her feelings.
"Are you ready?" Nidria giggled.
"No," Dara grumbled. She reached up to scratch her face but Anala smacked it away.
"Well ready or not, you're not messing up my hard work," Anala said.
"Can we just get this over with?" Dara sighed. She totally didn't whine. Nope.
"You remember the incantation, right?" Nidria asked as she fussed with the candles.
"Yes, I remember it. Gods," Dara rolled her eyes.
"Awesome!" Nidria chirped as she stood up. "Well, you're all ready to go! We'll just...Leave you alone."
Nidra and Anala giggled as they left the room.
"Well, here goes," Dara mumbled. "A-astrum splendid-dum, te invoco. I-invoco tuum potentiae. Dico nomen tuum: Alcor." As she stuttered out the phrase, she used her small pocket knife to make a shallow cut on her index finger and let the blood drip down into the summoning circle.
Slowly, every shadow flowed to the middle of the circle. Slowly, the shadows took on a humanoid shape and oh god this is happening.
"W̮̖̗̘̞͞H̵͖̞̯͕̗̲͠O͏̨̺̰͈ͅ ̕͢͏͈̟̯͎̮ͅͅḐ̧͓̺̥̙̰A͡͏̣͍̞̙͈R͓̥̠͍E͏̼͇̹̥̱̘͙͎͇S̺̪̠͘ͅ ̺̫͡ͅS̷͙͍͓͍̘͇̳U̵̞͕̩͠M̰̜͉̪̦̬͈̮M̴̸͚̣̳͈͔͚͍̥̲O̶̢̱̣̫͠Nͅ ̳͇͈A͏͉͔̞̳̜͎͢L̷̴̢͙̮Ç̪̮͉͝O̡̝͎͔Ṛ͖̻̩̞̺͘͢ ̶̡̻̱̲̺̳ͅT̛͔͘͢ͅH͉͇̺̪̞̮̻ͅE҉̫̼͍̼ͅ ̸̫̞D̶̡̛̝̠͓̝R̗̲̘͝E҉̣͓͕͔̬̤̝͉͞A̧̱̣M͖̳Ḅ̪͓̯͡E̫͎͚̭N҉͉̫̙̩̥̜͢͟D̴̛̠̪͓̰͖̺̠̖Ḛ͔͉̹͕͉̫̹R̨̲̖̙̮͞?̦̺"
Dara let out a small squeak of surprise. She hadn't expected his voice to reverberate within her chest and echo off of the walls, or be so damn loud.
"U-um. I summoned you. Alcor. Sir? Umm…" Dara trailed off and rubbed the top of her arm. She really wished that her friends had picked a warmer outfit. But no, here she was in a slinky black dress that was little more than a glorified tank-top. And heels. She felt like a stripper.
"W̴h͟y͏̴̵ ́d̢̢i͝d ỳ̀o҉u̡ ̶s͜u̡m̛͠mo̢͝n̕͢ ̢m̸͡e̶̕?" Alcor sighed and took a reclining position in the air.
"I. Um. I…" Dara tried to form a coherent sentence as she swept her eyes over the demon. His manner of dressing was old - Transcendence old - but she couldn't help but find it appealing. He looked nice in the suit and tail-coat. And, a small, impulsive part of her wanted to see if his floating hat only floated above his head or if it floated above anything.
"Lo͏̴o͘k͡͝,͏͞ ͡I ̷̨͜h̨av̵͘e̛̕ ̡̨t͜h̷͟͞in̵͢g̴̛s͢ t͠o̢̨̕ ̴d̀͟͠o͠ s͘͢o̷ ̵̷i̸f̵̨ ̷t͏h̷i̴s҉̢ i̸͘͝s̶͢͜ǹ̢҉͠͝'̸̧t̸̢̡́̕ ͘i͟͝ḿ͡p̷̢̧҉o҉̧͜͢͡r̴҉t̴̷̸̕ą̶́̕͠n̶t̷̸̢͜͞-͠҉̧̕"̸͟͞͡"
"My friend thinks that I'm your Mizar and I want you to tell her that she's wrong!" Dara blurted out.
Alcor blinked at her slowly, eyebrows furrowed. Dara felt like he was staring past her skin and into her very being. It was creepy. After what felt like hours, he spoke. "And̶.̸..́ W͠ha̵t w̷o͠u͝ld̀ ͏I̛ ͘get in ̕ex͜c͡hàn҉ge ͘fo͢r ̕tel͜lin̨g ̸y͘o̵u͜r̢ frie҉n͢d͝ ͜tha͟t̀ y̵o̵u͞'͢rę ͝n͘o͢t m͡y Ma͏-̴M̸i͘zar?"
"Shit," Dara grumbled. "I-I forgot about that part…"
Alcor laughed, and she felt her face flush. She couldn't do this. Damnit he was attractive and the more time she spent around him, the more she felt like she should be around him. This was not okay. This was not okay at all. Oh gods, what if she couldn't think of good enough collateral? What would he do? Would he kill her? Would he take her soul? Oh gods no she still had to go to college and
"Ŝ̶̞͖̲̽̍̍̀͞N̶̰̯͚̰̻̹͖͕͊͂A̵͐͂ͬͭ͊͛̈ͧ͏̜̖P̫̯̦͖̐͆ͪ̈ͫ̅̊ ̧̹͇͕̳̰͉̻̠͂ͬ͑ͤ͟Ō̅̀͏̯͔̞͕̹̼̞͎̭Ų̷̤̤̬͉̟̅ͣ̂Ţ̺̞̹̮̘ͩ̽͠ ̩͙ͫͦ̈́͒́́̆ͪȮ̖͐F̓̐̿͂̆͒ͦ͟͏̥̥̞ ͨ͋ͤ̈́ͩ̄͌̍͏͈̭̩Ȋ̜̗̙̩̜̗͊͜ͅT̠̜̥̙͔͌͋ͤ̎̉ͮ͢"
Dara jumped at the sudden shout from the dream demon. She stared at him and threw her hands up. "What was that for?! You nearly gave me a heart attack!"
"Y͟͠o̧͠u ̵͟w̕͏̷e͟͡r̕e̢̨ ̕͠ẁ̛͡ǫr͟k̶̡͟i̡̛ņ͢ǵ͏ ͜͡ý̢̡ou҉rse҉l̡f ̕i͘n̛҉tơ͘ ͘à pan͡i̧͞ć̶ ̛͏͟a̢̕t̸͞ta̴̢c̴͜k͝͏," he shrugged, scratching the back of his neck and tightening his stupid, flooffy, short ponytail. "I̵ d̨i͜d̨ǹ't̵ ̀wa͜nt̕ y͞ou ̧t͢o h͡av͜e to de̕a̸l wit҉h t̸h҉a̛t b̀ȩca͜u̷şe̷ you co͡uldn͡'͟t͞ ̀t͢hin̨k̶ ̶o͠f s̸om͟ethiǹg to ̢g̕iv͢e̷ ̷m͜e įn ͘r̷e͢tu̸r͏n̢ right̷ away.̕ The st̛u͜f͘f I̸ h̵a͡ve̷ ͞to ̕d͠o ͜isn't t̷h̛a̛t̷ i͢mpo̡r̷ta̷n̴t́."
"Oh…" Dara mumbled. "D-do you have any preferences? That aren't my soul. I'm not giving you my soul!"
She watched as the dream demon's face took on a rather sad expression. "N-no, your soul's safe." The soft tone surprised her. He sounded… Normal. And oddly heartbroken.
"A-are you okay?" Dara asked before she could think about it. Immediately, her face flushed. Was that out of line?
"I… No… I̛'m fin̵e.̴" he sighed heavily. "T̵h͠a̶t b̧a͝g ̧o͘f̢ candy͟ shouļd̛ ͘cov̧er ͞l҉y҉i͢ng̶ ͡tò ̕y̵o̸u͜r ͘fr̸ien҉d."
"Oh. Okay…" Dara stared at the demon with wide eyes. "W-what do you mean lying?!"
Dara tried to glare at the demon, but couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled up and escaped her. He looked like a puppy that had accidentally knocked over his food bowl and didn't know how to fix it. It was adorable.
After Dara calmed herself down, she asked again. "What do you mean lying? There's no way that I'm your Mizar."
Alcor sighed heavily and stopped levitating. His shoes made a small clack on the hardwood floor of her bedroom when he landed. He waved one hand towards the door as he stepped out of the circle.
"Isn't the circle supposed to keep you in?" Dara asked as she shuffled backwards.
"P̢lease҉," he scoffed, "̶I;m way more p̛ow̕ér͟f̢ul than that ̕li͏t̛tle͡ c̕irc̛le."
"I d-don't want to be your Mizar. I want my soul back!" Dara pleaded.
Alcor sighed and lifted his shoulders and quickly put them back down. Dara recognized it as an old gesture called a "shrug". "It doesn't wo̸r͞k like that."
"Then how does it work?" Dara crossed her arms across her chest, looking up to meet his eyes. "I-I mean, I'm not too sure if I really want to be involved with you. Or if you'd want me," she mumbled, a blush dusting her cheeks again.
"You're my Mizar, why wouldn't I want you?" he asked, head tilting to the side.
"Mine," the demon growled in his low timbre, pulling the slight woman into his chest by the waist. Her molten chocolate orbs looked up into his golden black ones in awe. "My Mizar," he growled again and slanted their lips together in a passionate kiss.
Dara flushed at the recollection of the book and took a step back, only to find herself against the wall. "I-I mean I'm not… Strong or experienced," she mumbled again, twisting her hands together nervously.
"You look all blurple are you okay?" Alcor asked as he stepped forwards.
"I… You… We... " Dara blushed heavily and flailed her arms around, unsure of what she wanted to say first.
"Are you getting sick? You look overheated. Do you need me to take care of you?" Alcor's eyes were wide in concern as he took in his Mizar's heavy flush.
"Just let me take care of you," The demon smirked as he moved his hands down under her skirt-
"I'm a virgin okay?! I'm not ready for… I don't want to… I mean it's not that you're not attractive but…" Dara let out a high-pitched sound of embarrassment and covered her face with her hands. "I'm not experienced and I know that you aren't a fan of inexperience and-" Dara cut her rambling off and peeked at the dream demon through her fingers.
He was staring at her, mouth agape. Occasionally it would close and he looked like he was close to speaking, but only a small squeak would escape. This was not the Alcor she had read about.
Slowly, she brought her hands down from her face. "A-are you okay? I um…" she looked at him again, noticing that he was at least breathing regularly. "I didn't mean to, uh, break you?"
Alcor closed his eyes and shook his head violently. "N̵e͞v̵e̕r͜ me͡n͠t̡i҉o͞n͜ ̧t́͘h̡́a̢͡҉ţ̴̵̕ a̢gai̵n̸."
"S-so you don't…?"
"No. I don't… Where did you even get that idea?" He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"The. Uh. Twin Souls Series…" Dara mumbled.
Alcor made a retching noise. "Of course. I hate those books. They got everything wrong," he grumbled.
"I'm starting to see that now," Dara laughed nervously.
Alcor sighed and took a few steps back. "Anyway, about that deal. You still want me to lie to your friends in exchange for the bag of candy?"
"Y-yeah," Dara sighed. "I don't want them to know. I mean, I'm not even sure if I want to know but… I'll figure something out." She started to walk over to the shelf where the candy was, but stumbled in the heels. Alcor was instantly right by her side, catching her arm to keep her from falling. Dara flushed and looked anywhere but his face. "Thanks."
"Why are you wearing stilt-shoes?"
Dara burst out laughing and would have doubled over if Alcor hadn't still been holding her arm up. "Stilt shoes. Oh my gods. That's great!" she giggled.
"Shut up," Alcor grumbled. "I'm not the one wearing death traps on my feet."
Dara rolled her eyes as she slipped out of the shoes. Without them adding to her height, her head barely came up to Alcor's shoulder. She was short for sixteen, but she didn't care. She tried to move to the shelf again, but Alcor's grip on her arm stopped her.
"C-can I have my arm back?" She asked, tilting her head up to look at him.
"Oh. Yeah. Sure…" Her arm was swiftly released.
She padded over to the bookshelf and grabbed the bag of candy. "Alright. Okay," she took a deep breath. "In exchange for telling my friends that I'm not your Mizar - and only that - you get this bag of candy. That sound good?"
Alcor floated up again, only a few inches, and put a hand to his chin. "No obvious loopholes," he shrugged before extending his hand. Dara looked down to see it wreathed in blue flame. "Lie to your friends about your Mizar status for the candy. Deal?"
"Deal," Dara nodded firmly. She hesitantly placed her hand in his and tried not to focus on how warm and comfortable it felt as they shook. The bag of candy disappeared from her hand.
Alcor turned and waved his hand at the door. It opened, a startled Nidria and Anala spilling out from behind it. The both of them blushed and averted their eyes from Alcor, stuttering out apologies for trying to listen in.
"The firśt̷ ͡th͡ing I͏ d̢id ẁa҉s̷ m͘ak͜ȩ i͜t͞ im͟p̸o͢ssib̸le͠ ̛f̕or ̨t̛he͢ t̷w͠o҉ of̵ ̶you͡ t̀o ̴lis̡t̡e͟n͢ ͝ín," he smiled at them, flahsing his double rows of sharp teeth. "Yóu͜ ha҉ve ̨no̵t̶hing ͠t̶o ̵a̧polo͜g͡iz̕e ͏fo͠r."
Nidria was the first to recover and take in Dara's state: shoe-less and flustered. "Soooo?" she smiled, propping her elbows on the floor and her chin on her hands.
"Yo̸ur̵ f̛rie̵nd i͡s ́not̛ my̨ ̴Mi̧zar," Alcor sighed heavily.
"Whaaaaat?!" Nidria and Anala shrieked in unison, faces crestfallen.
Alcor turned to Dara and gave her a shit-eating grin.
"No," she said as she came to a realization. There had been a loophole in their deal. A very obvious loophole. "No you shut your fuckin-"
"I ͡lied͞. ͜Jus͢t̕ ̶k̕íd͜di̴ng̶. S̕h́e̕ r̢e͠all̶y̛ ̴is̛.͝ B̶y͠e!" And just like that, he disappeared.
Nidria and Anala practically jumped on Dara, questions overlapping.
Dara sighed. It seemed inevitable that she end up in this situation. She knew one thing for sure though. She was going to get Alcor back for this.